Dental abscess - Symptoms of dental abscess

The main symptom of a dental abscess is an intense, throbbing pain in your affected tooth or gum.

The pain usually comes on suddenly and may gradually get worse over a few hours or a few days.

Sometimes the pain may spread to your ear, lower jaw and neck, on the same side as the affected tooth. There can also be severe swelling in the face, which can spread if the abscess is not treated.

Other symptoms

These can include:

tenderness of your tooth and surrounding area
sensitivity to very hot or cold food and drink
an unpleasant taste in your mouth
bad breath (halitosis)
a general feeling of being unwell
difficulty opening your mouth
difficulty swallowing (dysphagia)
disturbed sleep
a high temperature (fever)

When to seek immediate medical help

The following symptoms may mean the infection has spread to other parts of your body:

swelling in your face
a high temperature (fever) of 38°C (100.4°F) or above
severe pain that does not respond to treatment with painkillers
breathing difficulties

If you develop any of these symptoms and you are not due to see a dentist straight away, you will need to access NHS emergency dental services. In this situation, you can call:

your dentist, who should have an answerphone message with details of how to access out-of-hours dental treatment
the helpline of your local clinical commissioning group (CCG) – you can use the find services directory to find your local CCG
NHS 111

Alternatively, you could visit the accident and emergency (A&E) department of your local hospital.